RIO DE JANEIRO—Results of Brazil’s fourth presalt bid round has confirmed the attractiveness of the country’s presalt layer, according to members of Brazil’s government.

Three of the four blocks offered during the June 7 round were acquired. The round raised roughly $829 million in signature bonuses and a commitment of $194.2 million in planned investments for exploratory work.

“The round was extremely successful, attracting attention from large companies. The process of attracting investments to the country continues,” said Décio Oddone, the head of Brazil Oil and Gas Regulator (ANP) in the press conference after the round. “We will see the results in the future through the production of oil and gas, job creation, royalties and taxes. The goodwill of profit oil achieved in the round showed the presalt attractiveness.”

The average of the goodwill of profit oil was 236%, which translates to $40 billion in revenue for Brazil over the next 30 years, according to Oddone. Under the production-sharing regime, the winning companies are those that offer the state the highest profit oil, starting from a minimum percentage established in the tender protocol. The signature bonuses, also established in the tender protocol, are fixed.

“The success of the bid has shown that we are on the right path,” said João Vicente Carvalho, Brazil’s oil and gas secretary.

The Uirapuru presalt block, located in the Campos Basin, was the most sought-after block of the round with offers from four consortiums. The winner was a consortium formed by Brazil’s Petrobras (30%), U.S. Exxon Mobil Corp. (28%), Norways’ Equinor (28%) and Portugal’s Petrogal (14%), which offered roughly $700 million in signature bonus and 75.49% in profit oil, three times more than what was established in the tender protocol.

The Uirapuru area is near the giant Carcará oil field, which contains more than 2 billion barrels of estimated recoverable oil. Development plans are also underway in the Carcara Field, where operator Equinor began drilling in late April.

“Uirapuru is a uniquely valuable block that represents tremendous opportunity for us,” said Steve Greenlee, president of ExxonMobil Exploration Co. “Brazil continues to represent a key investment for ExxonMobil, and we look forward to exploring and developing its world-class resources with our co-venturers and the government.”

The Três Marias Block, located in the Santos Basin, received the highest profit oil. The consortium formed by Petrobras (30%), Royal Dutch Shell (40%) and Chevron (30%) offered 49.95% in profit oil, five times more than the required amount. The consortium will spend a signature bonus of $26.3 million. The area received two offers.

The Dois Irmãos Block, located in the Campos Basin, was acquired by the consortium of Petrobras (45%), Equinor (25%) and BP (30%), which agreed to pay a $105.26 million signature bonus. The consortium was the only bidder for the area.

Petrobras will be the sole operator in the three areas auctioned during the round.

Itaimbezinho was the only block that did not receive any offers, but that didn’t weaken the round’s success for Oddone. “We knew that that area would not be as attractive as the other areas offered,” Oddone said.

Crisis Mode

The round was held as Petrobras faces a political crisis related to its fuel prices policy. The company faced criticism by Brazilians after its attempt to peg fuel prices to international oil markets last year to help to overcome its giant debt.

In late May, truckers decided to carry out a nationwide strike, which threw Brazil into chaos as protesters blocked traffic on highways, supermarkets rationed fruit and gas station pumps ran dry.

The truckers’ demand for state intervention to reduce fuel prices was accepted by Brazilian President Michel Temer, which led Petrobras CEO Pedro Parente to step down June 1. This sparked fears that Brazil would return to its state-interventionism policy, harming Petrobras’ financial status.

Petrobras CFO Ivan Monteiro has been named to head Petrobras, replacing Parente. Since then, the Brazilian major’s shares have suffered its worst fall in two years.

During a press conference after the bid round, Oddone emphasized that fuel prices in Brazil will not face state-intervention. However, he also said that the regulator will discuss with the public the best methods to implement a price formation based on market prices and more predictability. “The less regulated the market, the better,” he said.

Offshore